The following patents and/or patent applications are hereby incorporated by reference: U.S. Pat. No. 6,015,071 titled “Vehicle Storage Divider” issued Jan. 18, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,050,202 titled “Storage Divider Shelf” issued Apr. 18, 2001. It is well-known to provide seats in vehicles for accommodating the comfort of vehicle passengers and the spatial requirements for cargo storage. The known seats are typically movable in different directions for improving the comfort of the vehicle passengers and for transforming the seats into a cargo storage position. Such seats are commonly used in a front portion of the vehicle for an operator and a front passenger, and additionally include seats in one or more rows for passengers in the non-first row and/or rear of the vehicle. Such non-first row and/or seats may fold into a vertical or horizontal storage position for converting passenger space into cargo storage space. Such seating systems also includes conventional and integrated safety belt system having one or more anchor points attached to the seat, which requires that the seat have sufficient structural strength to withstand the loading applied to the safety belts during collisions. The known or non-first row rear seating systems also include passenger safety belts having one or more anchor points attached to the floor or side of the vehicle that require separate assembly steps during vehicle construction.
It is also known in vehicles such as pickup trucks and other sport or utility vehicles to provide a “structural” panel forming a part of the vehicle for separating a passenger cabin portion of the vehicle from a cargo storage portion of the vehicle. Such known panels may be moveable for folding the panel into a storage or other use position to create an opening communicating between the cargo storage portion and the passenger cabin for increasing the total cargo storage space to include a portion of the passenger cabin.
There is an increasing demand for vehicles having improved cargo storage management systems combined with increased passenger capacity. This demand must be balanced with the need to maintain or reduce overall size, weight, cost, and assembly time and complexity of the vehicle. It would be advantageous to provide an improved seating system for a vehicle of the type having a folding panel, such as a mid-gate or tail-gate for a pickup truck, and rear seating capability. In such a seating system, it would be advantageous to provide a seat back portion having an adjustable inclination to improve passenger comfort when the panel is used in the seating position. It would also be advantageous to provide such a seating system having improved available cargo storage and passenger seating space. It would be further advantageous to provide a seating system that will further increase the available cargo storage space options to include at least a first cargo storage position where the panel is vertically positioned and a second cargo storage position where the panel is horizontally positioned. It would also be further advantageous to provide a seating system in which passenger safety belts are provided independent of the seat to reduce the size and weight of the seat structures, to reduce assembly time and complexity. Further, it would be beneficial to have a system that takes advantage of the structural strength of the mid-gate panel.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a seating and cargo system for a vehicle having any one or more of these or other advantageous features and overcoming the problems wherever in the known seating system.